Recognize a common theme to these pictures???







Every morning when Tegan wakes up the first words out of her mouth, in kind of a high pitched whine, is "Mom, can I wear a dress today?" This concept of needing to wear a dress is so foreign to me. My mom and any of my siblings can attest to the fact that I hated (and still do) wearing dresses. They would proceed to tell you about the purple courduroy pants that I wore every day of my life in my childhood. I was a tomboy and dresses were the LAST thing on my mind. So this idea of princesses and dresses and dancing and pigtails is all new to me. I'm perfectly willing to accept it. They are who they are and the last thing I want to do is force them to be as I was, which came with it's own set of problems (just ask my mom), but I am amazed at how much it affects their mood to have a dress on.

Jess was my first dress girl and we had our battles simply because I didn't think it was necessary that she wear a dress every day, but a friend questioned why it mattered to me and I realized it shouldn't unless it's putting them in harms way, and I can't think of many scenarios where that would be the case, I should let the matter be. Besides there was a time when that was all women wore. So Jess wore her dresses everyday and their was harmony in the home again.

Then Tegan came along. She seemed polar opposite of Jess to me. I breathed a little sigh of relief. I don't know at what point things changed, but she became infected with the dress syndrome and here we go again.

People start to notice quickly when your girls wear dresses everywhere, everyday. Before we knew it we had dresses being sent from Aunts and Uncles, Grandmas and Grandpas, friends, neighbors, caregivers and ward members. Next thing I know their closet is bursting with frilly, fluffy, sparkly dresses. I'm not complaining, I can look in the closet and see maybe two dresses that we've purchased ourselves, but space is getting a little tight.

I've learned a few things from them concerning dresses. It cannot be just any dress. Purchasing a dress for myself comes down to three factors; comfort, practicality, and price. I guess it needs to be a flattering fit too. Jess and Tegan have their own set of rules as follows...

Spinsation
You can't win if it doesn't spin. First thing they do once the dress is on is spin around to ensure that the spin height is at the proper level. If not, then goodbye to that dress.

Just a trace of lace
Lace seems to girlify it just enough for them giving it that dainty, sophisticated look.

Bow--the BIGGER the BETTER
Without the bow the dress ain't gonna flow. And the tying of the bow is a whole different post.

The bling factor
Some sparkle and shine make a dress divine. If you're not blinded by the dress in the sunlight then you betta change that dress right up.

So if you run into us at the park or hiking and my girls are traipsing around in sequenced, lacy dresses you will know that for me this is a battle definitely not worth fighting because in our home girls + dress = lots of happiness and smiles.